Validity

Question 1

Definition of validity?

Answer 1

• the extent to which a given findings shows what it’s believed to show
• refers to the internal characteristics of a piece of research

Question 2

Definition of a valid finding?

Answer 2

-one where there are no possible alternatives to the explanation provided by the researcher

Question 3

Definition of internal validity?

Answer 3

• extent that the study tells us what we think it tells us

- whether there’s any other causes for the observed effects

Question 4

What are threats to internal validity when a study is prolonged over time?

Answer 4

• history effect
• maturation effect
• regression to the mean
• testing effect
• instrumentation effect

Question 5

Definition of history effect?

Answer 5

-event other than manipulation occurs between pretest and post-test and effects the study outcome

Question 6

Definition of maturation effect?

Answer 6

-participants naturally change between pretest and post-test

Question 7

Definition of regression to the mean?

Answer 7

-the likelihood that if participants do really bad at first they’ll improve

Question 8

What is testing effect 1?

Answer 8

-participants perform better at a post-test because they had practice

Question 9

What is testing effect 2?

Answer 9

-participants perform worse at a post-test because they got tired

Question 10

What is testing effect 3?

Answer 10

-by doing a pretest participants are alerted to some aspects of the manipulation and pay more attention to these

Question 11

Definition of instrumentation effect?

Answer 11

-performance at pretest and post-test differs because different measures are used

Question 12

What are participant related threats?

Answer 12

• selection effect

- mortality

Question 13

Definition of selection effect?

Answer 13

• participants in different conditions aren’t equivalent

- happens when random assignment fails

Question 14

Definition of mortality?

Answer 14

• participants with certain characteristics drop out of the study
• non-random

Question 15

Definition of external validity?

Answer 15

• extent to which results can be generalised beyond the context of the study
• samples have to be representative on theoretically relevant dimensions

Question 16

What is the issue with student samples?

Answer 16

• issue when the process is expected to operate differently in a student population
• e.g. social influence

Question 17

What are the different validity types under external?

Answer 17

• ecological
• temporal
• statistical conclusion
• construct

Question 18

Definition of ecological validity?

Answer 18

• what may be true in one set of environmental circumstances may not be true in all environments
• mundane and experimental realism

Question 19

Definition of temporal validity?

Answer 19

-what may be true at one time may not be true at all other times or any other times

Question 20

Definition of statistical conclusion validity?

Answer 20

• reduced when inappropriate statistical procedures are used

- e.g. assumptions made by statistical test aren’t met by the data

Question 21

Definition of construct validity?

Answer 21

-operational definitions of the IVs and the DVs fit the purpose of the study

Question 22

Definition of content validity?

Answer 22

-ability to include/represent all aspects of the construct you’re trying to measure

Question 23

Definition of content validity?

Answer 23

-ability to include/represent all aspects of the construct you’re trying to measure

Question 24

Definition of concurrent validity?

Answer 24

-ability to distinguish between groups that should theoretically be able to be distinguished between